The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Bayelsa state has suffered a major setback ahead of the December 5 governorship election in the state as two ex-aides of Governor Seriake Dickson have defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Furoebi Akene, the commissioner for lands and survey, who resigned his appointment penultimate week and Apreala Pereladei, the Dickson’s special representative to Southern Ijaw, dumped the PDP for the APC on Saturday, November 21, as the governorship candidate of the APC, Chief Timipre Sylva took his campaign tour to the Southern Ijaw local government area, The Punch reports.
The two ex-aides, who said they had defected to the APC with their supporters, added that the APC represented the needed change that would fast-track the socio-economic and political development of the state.
Among the major towns in the Southern Ijaw area, where Sylva and his entourage visited were Otuan, Amassoma, Koluama, Foropa and Oporoma, headquarters of the council.
At Oporoma, there was a mild drama as an aged woman in her 80s, found her way to the podium, shouting Sylva’s name.
Assisted by Sylva and Heineken Lokpobiri, the minister of state of agriculture and rural development, to the stage, the aged woman thrilled the crowd, dancing with the APC standard-bearer and the minister and was given a broom, the party’s symbol for her efforts, The Nation reports.
Addressing supporters and the defectors, Sylva said that the APC had come to change their lives from poverty to wealth.
He said that the Southern Ijaw was a strong stakeholder in APC because his running mate, Wilberforce Igiri, and the state chairman of the party, Tiwei Orunimighe, were indigenes of the area.
Sylva said: “Oporoma people, Southern Ijaw people, if you want development and progress, it is APC. The opposition party is dead. We have buried it in Abuja. We will also bury it in Bayelsa.
“On December 5, vote for me and my deputy. After victory, we will sit down and look at how to bring peace to Bayelsa, companies will come, and there will be jobs and enjoyment.
“A party does not make people. Individuals make a party. The burial date for PDP is December 5. On that day, we will dance proper Owugiri and bury the party finally. President Muhammadu Buhari told me he loves Bayelsa and that Bayelsa should be controlled by APC. If we hold election today, APC will win by 75%.”
Some weeks back, over 1000 APC youths defected to the PDP in Southern Ijaw local government area.
The Southern Ijaw, home to Dickson’s strong allies such as his Chief of Staff, government House, Talford Ongol, late former governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha; and Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Konbowei Benson, is believed to be a major battle ground for Dickson and Sylva in the December poll.
Of the total 663,639 number of registered voters released on November 5 by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the election, Southern Ijaw has 120,827 voters, second only to the Yenagoa local government, which has 139,777 voters.
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